Smart poodle gives epilepsy warnings

A poodle is helping to transform the life of a young woman with epilepsy.

Hannah Baker, 20, from Dedham in Essex, has severe epilepsy, brought on by a non-malignant tumour diagnosed when she was six years old. Milo has been trained by the charity Support Dogs to spot changes to her pupils or skin tone before she has a seizure and alert her.

Before Milo, Hannah used to have up to 80 seizures a day. That figures has now dropped to about 10, and most of those are minor. 'Milo is like a security blanket for me,' said Hannah. 'He's made a huge difference to my life and to my family's life.'

Milo alerts Hannah about eight to 10 minutes before she has a seizure, and Hannah then sits down on the floor or with her back against the wall to make sure she is out of any danger.

Her mother, Nicola, said: 'I've gone from worrying about her every minute of the day to worrying about her half a dozen times a day, which is a significant difference.'

Hannah says she is now more confident in doing ordinary activities such as going for a walk or making a trip to the cinema because of Milo.